Having drawn nearly 29,000 visitors last year, the International Marble & Granite Fair in Vitória, Brazil, has steadily grown in international importance. The event is set to take place from February 14 to 17 at the Carapina Pavilion in Vitória, which is the capital city of Espírito Santo, one of Brazil's leading stoneworking regions. This gives visitors the opportunity to not only visit the fair, but also to visit with the many stoneworking plants in the region.

According to Milanez & Milaneze, organizer of the event, over 1,000 varieties of stone will be on display at the 2006 Vitória Stone Fair. This will include a broad range of granite, slate, marble and other stones from stone suppliers throughout Brazil. Stone will be shown in slab format as well as tiles, mosaics and cut-to-size architectural pieces.

In addition to Brazilian companies, a new International Pavilion will be in place for foreign exhibitors, including firms from Morocco, Germany, Italy, the U.S., China, Egypt and India, among others.

In all, there were 360 exhibitors at the 2005 edition of the fair, and many of the exhibitors introduced new stone materials at their booth. The show floor itself saw brisk traffic and business activity.

The fairgrounds will also feature improved infrastructure, as Milanez & Milaneze reports that all indoor pavilions will be air conditioned, a major improvement when considering Brazil's tropical climate.

According to Milanez & Milaneze, a total of 28,750 people came to the Vitória Stone Fair in 2005, representing an increase of more than 20% over the previous year. Moreover, international attendance rose by one-third last year, and international visitors represented 56 different nations.